The Deputy Chair of the NA Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs Rustam Bakoyan and the Committee member Artur Hovhannisyan, who are also members of the NA Armenia-Germany Friendship Group, received the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Armenia Viktor Richter on October 31.
Rustam Bakoyan underlined the dynamic development of Armenian-German relations and friendly relations. The Deputy Chair of the Committee informed the Ambassador about the recent events in our country, noting that Armenia and the Armenian people are facing difficulties and challenges. “100.000 Armenians forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh came to Armenia. After the war of 2020, Azerbaijan regularly attacks the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, and these risks still exist today,” Rustam Bakoyan said and added that Azerbaijan kept 120.000 Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh under siege for more than 9 months, after which, on September 19, the military aggression took place with all its consequences. According to the Deputy Chair of the Committee, the Russian peacekeeping contingent did not fulfill its obligations under the trilateral statement in that situation, as a result of which hundreds of Armenians were killed, and many of them were amputated and humiliated. In other words, there have been many violations of humanitarian law.
“In this sense, I consider the response of our international partners regarding the criminal and unacceptable actions of Azerbaijan necessary. With its criminal behavior, Azerbaijan disrupts the peace and stability of the region, grossly violating human rights and humanitarian rights, becoming an ontological threat to the entire Armenian people,” Rustam Bakoyan said, mentioning also the cynical rhetoric of official Azerbaijan regarding the so-called ‘Western Azerbaijan,’ referring to the territories of Armenia from Sevan to Syunik. “I think that the territorial ambitions and criminal actions of Azerbaijan should be restrained by imposing sanctions on Azerbaijan,” the Deputy Chair of the Committee said.
The Ambassador Viktor Richter also valued the relations between the two countries, stressing that Germany is always by Armenia’s side and supports Armenia on the way to reforms. Touching upon the regional issues, Viktor Richter underscored that Germany condemns the use of force by Azerbaijan against the population of Nagorno-Karabakh and expresses its support to the forcibly displaced people. “Germany also supports the peace process and the negotiations on the peace process. Germany hopes that the both sides will reach a fair peace, which will ensure long-term stability in the region,” the Ambassador said. According to him, Germany has condemned the military positions and aggressions of Azerbaijan on various platforms and believes that the use of force should not remain without consequences. “Unfortunately, there is no common consensus in the EU on imposing sanctions,” the German official said.
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“I attach great importance to the support of the Federal Republic of Germany to the democracy of the Republic of Armenia and, most importantly, to the peace process. And the text of the declaration recently signed in Granada was extremely important, where, in fact, Germany expressed its support for the territorial integrity of Armenia, and of course for the preservation of the territorial integrity of Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the Committee member Artur Hovhannisyan mentioned in his speech, expressing his opinion that the meeting would be more effective if Azerbaijan also participated in the meeting, as planned.
Artur Hovhannisyan also presented to the Ambassador the efforts of our country to establish peace in the region, for which purpose the project Crossroads of Peace was initiated and developed, in which Armenia’s proposal on the opening of communications was presented.
In this context, the Ambassador Richter found Armenia’s efforts impressive, noting that the Armenian side really has a constructive approach to the peace process.
National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia